OPPORTUNITIES ABROAD

English is spoken at a useful level by a quarter of the world population. That’s over one and a half billion people.

It’s the world’s language of exchange, communication and business – to just a name a few areas. So, to speak English is to open yourself up to a world of opportunities.

If you’re planning to live, work or study using English you will often need to prove your ability to use it.

IELTS (International English Language Testing System) is the world’s most popular English language test. More than 10,000 organisations in 140 countries accept IELTS, including schools, universities, employers, immigration authorities and professional bodies

More than 2.9 million IELTS tests around the world are taken each year.

Taking IELTS opens doors. It can help you live, study and work around the world, including USA, UK, Australia, Canada and New Zealand.

IELTS assesses all of your English skills — reading, writing, listening and speaking, and is designed to reflect how you will use English at study, at work, and at play, in your new life abroad.

Employers and universities want you to be able to use English in the real world, so IELTS is what you will need to prove it.

IELTS is the most widely accepted English language test that uses a one-on-one speaking test to assess your English communication skills. This means that you are assessed by having a real-life conversation with a real person. This is the most effective and natural way of testing your English conversation skills.

Imagine you are in a brand new city and need to get to a particular place. If you had no technology for help, you would be all at sea. Even so, you could still get directions the old-fashioned way via signposts – signs next to a road giving information about the direction and distance to a place.

Similarly, when language learners hear a lecture or an extended talk given by a native speaker, they may experience difficulty in fully understanding what’s being said. Unlike reading, where you can check content over and over again, listening generally gives you only one chance to make out what is being said. In such a situation, identifying signpost expressions can help improve comprehension.

So, what exactly are signpost expressions? Well, they are words that guide the listener through the various stages of a talk. In a way, signpost expressions help the listener predict what is going to be said next. As a result, the relationship between points becomes clearer, be it comparing, contrasting, adding information, or just sequencing.

Here are some common expressions used for signposting:

Signpost expressions

What they indicate

Firstly

The beginning of a list of points

like, such as

Introduction of an example

while, whereas

Comparing two or more things

In other words, Put another way

Rephrasing what has been said

Moreover, What’s more

Introduction of additional information

However, This isn’t always the case though

Introduction of a contrast or an exception

As I said earlier

Reference to a point made earlier

Moving on

Introduction of a new point

Finally

The speaker is nearing the end of the talk / Introduction of the last point

In language tests, candidates often need to listen to long monologues and answer questions. A good example of this is the IELTS Listening test, which has two monologues, including a university-style lecture.

Be sure to look out for signposting language in an exam situation, and you’ll have a very good chance of finding the right answers.

GLOSSARY

at sea

Form

:

phrase

Meaning

:

confused and not sure what to do

Example

:

I’m all at sea with this new syllabus. I mean, I am not familiar with many of these topics.

extended

Form

:

adjective

Meaning

:

longer than expected

Example

:

If you buy this TV right now, you also get an extended warranty.

over and over again

Form

:

phrase

Meaning

:

several times

Example

:

Reihaan, your dad has told you over and over again not to play in the rain.

in a way

Form

:

phrase

Meaning

:

to a certain extent

Example

:

In a way marrying Jake within weeks of meeting him was a big mistake.

monologue

Form

:

noun

Meaning

:

a long speech by someone during a conversation that stops others from saying anything

Everyone has heard a story (or two) of a friend, or friend of a friend, who has been denied a student visa to study in the U.S., right? Well, the truth is, that over the last five years, the global average of students being approved for a U.S. student visa (F-1) has been over 80 percent.

The good news is with the right preparation, honest answers, and appropriate documentation you can give yourself an excellent chance of being granted a student visa.

Here are the ten steps you will need to take:10. Got your I-20? Make sure you have received the I-20 & admission letter from the college/university you plan to attend. You may have been accepted and received I-20s from more than one school. We recommend that you make a decision as to which institution you will attend before starting the visa process.

9. Check your passport:
• Make sure your passport will be valid for at least six months after your initial planned entry into the U.S.
• Is your name spelled the same (and in the same order) as is listed on your passport? It has to be!

8. Pay your SEVIS fee. Students can pay this fee online. You will need an e-receipt for next steps in the process.

7. Complete the Visa Application Form online DS-160 (non-immigrant visa application). You will need most of the following items to complete this form:
• Passport
• SEVIS ID (from your I-20 form)
• Address of the college you will attend (usually on the I-20)
• Travel itinerary to the U.S. if you have made arrangements already
• Admission letter from the college you will attend
• Proof of funding – bank statements, scholarship award letters, etc.
• Dates of your last five visits to the United States (if any)

6. Plan ahead! You can schedule your visa appointment up to 120 days in advance of the start date listed on your I-20 (when your new school requires you to be on campus).

5. Schedule your visa appointment at the U.S. embassy/consulate nearest you. You will also need to pay the visa application fee (approximately $160, price varies slightly per country).

4. Attend a Visa Session at an EducationUSA Advising Center in your country. At these sessions they will make it clear what they are expecting from successful student visa applicants, and the kind of questions they will ask.

3. Enjoy the experience. A couple years ago our friends at the U.S. Embassy in London put together a great video to help ease your fears, Mission: Possible – Get Your U.S. Student Visa.

2. Talk to your friends. Are any of your former classmates studying in the U.S. now? Ask their advice about their interview experiences and ask for their recommendations.

1. Breathe, relax, and be honest. You have invested a lot of time, energy, and resources to get to this visa interview. Try not to be too nervous. You are almost there.

A preposition is a relationship word which generally shows the location of something (in the hall), the time when something happens (at midnight), the way something is done (by train), and so on.

Learning them can be a little bit tricky, as there aren’t always rules to help you choose the correct one. To make matters worse, some prepositions can have many different uses. For example, according to the Oxford Learner’s Dictionaries, the preposition on has eighteen different functions.

In this article, we’ll consider how to use three common prepositions of time: at, on, in.

When to use at

Use at when referring to a specific time that is relatively short.

clock times

at 7 o’clock | at 6:30 pm

holiday periods

at Christmas | at Easter

specific times of the day

at noon | at midnight

meal times

at lunchtime | at dinner time

Of course, there are situations when at is used to show longer periods of time ‒ for instance, we say at night, or at the weekend.

When to use on

Use on when referring to days and dates in general.

days of the week

on Monday | on Thursday

dates

on the 15th of July | on 22nd February

special days

on New Year’s Day | on Republic Day | on her birthday

parts of specific days

on Friday morning | on Sunday night

When to use in

Use in when referring to longer periods of time.

parts of a day

in the morning | in the afternoon | in the evening

seasons

in winter | in autumn

months

in February | in July

years

in 1977 | in 2015

decades

in the seventies | in the 1980s

centuries

in the fifteenth century | in the twenty first century

Remember, we do not use a preposition before certain expressions of time, such as last, next, every, each, or this. For example, we say:

In this month’s instalment of The View From Campus, Rasana Pradhan, a master’s degree student in environmental safety & health management at University of Findlay, talks about her plans for after graduation.

After studying for two years, it’s time for me to graduate. This feeling of leaving behind my friends, professors, supervisors and colleagues tears me up, but life moves on.

After I graduate my life will be totally different, I will have to adjust in a new environment with new people – it will be a new beginning. As soon as I graduate, I will have to find a new job. My university has been very supportive and always comes up with different events for international students with job placement opportunities.

As international students on F-1 student visas, after completing two semesters of study we can apply for curricular practical training (CPT) and work as full or part-time interns in companies. Once graduated, students can apply for optional practical training (OPT) to be eligible to work in their related field. For students with degrees in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) the OPT session is for a period of 3 years and for others it is 1 year.

Findlay has a Center for Career and Professional Development (CCPD) on campus for helping students apply for internships and jobs. This center holds job fairs and professional development workshops providing a platform for the students to find internships and jobs. Many pre-eminent companies come to recruit new employees and many students secure internships and jobs from these fairs. CCPD also organize mock interviews to help student face real interviews in the future. Professional development workshops and these mock interview sessions provide useful tips and train students about finding jobs and facing interviews in the correct way.

I truly feel my university helps students find excellent jobs after they graduate. I hope to have positive news soon!

This month’s article features Heather Augar, Director of International Admissions, Fairleigh Dickinson University (NJ)

Describe your institution in five words?

Global

Diverse

Multidisciplinary

Student-oriented

Affordable

What is FDU best known for overseas?

FDU prepares students to succeed in a world marked by interdependence, diversity, and change by integrating global education in all phases of university life.

New Jersey’s largest private university, FDU has campuses in the metropolitan New York City area; Vancouver, Canada; and Wroxton, England. Over 100 BA, MA and PhD degree programs are offered in our four academic colleges.

As of fall 2015, FDU had 1,703 international students from more than 80 countries out of our total population of 12,000 students at our two campuses in New Jersey.

How does your institution use IELTS in the admissions process? How valuable a tool is it in evaluating prospective students?

IELTS has become one of the most frequent tests submitted and is widely accepted amongst U.S. universities as proof of English proficiency, as it is as FDU.

Post-Admissions Next Steps

If international students are admitted to more than one institution, what are the most important next steps they should take?

Students should carefully check their letters of admission to verify the date by which they must confirm their intent to enroll. For most students applying to U.S. universities for the fall term, this will be May 1. However, universities with spring or multiple terms as well as those with rolling admissions may have different confirmation deadlines.

Once the final university choice has been made, students must contact the other universities that they’ve applied or been admitted to in order to inform them that they no longer plan to attend.

What advice would you give to students making their final decision where to attend?

It is important to do as much research as possible. Take advantage of every opportunity to connect with faculty, staff, current students and alumni of the university whether in person or via social media.

Make sure that the final decision is the university that is the best match-academically, financially and socially.

Can international students receive financial aid from U.S. universities?

Many U.S. universities, including Fairleigh Dickinson, offer scholarships and other types of aid to international students. It is important to do research about each university of interest to learn what types of scholarships or aid programs are available.

Is a deposit needed to secure a place at the college or university students choose?

This varies by the institution. In some cases, a financial deposit is required to confirm enrollment. In other cases, a matriculation/intent to enroll form is required without a monetary deposit. It is important to read admission materials carefully to learn what is required and the deadlines for submission.

What is an I-20, and how can international students get theirs?

An I-20 is also known as a Certificate of Eligibility for Non-Immigrant Student Status. It is a document issued by a Student Exchange and Visitor Program (SEVP) approved U.S. educational institution certifying that a student has been admitted into a full-time study program and that they have demonstrated sufficient financial resources.

Students who have obtained an I-20 form are eligible to apply for a non-immigrant student visa to the U.S. Some U.S. universities issue the I-20 at the time of admission whereas others issue this upon confirmation of intent to enroll.